Area teams cap successful seasons

(Above) GHV’s Chase Smith (second from front) led the Cardinals with an individual second place finish. GHV had two runners place in the top 10.  Chase’s brother, Reese, finished fifth in the race. -All photos courtesy of Tammy Orr

GHV boys capture Class 2A Title; Smith places 2nd Clear Lake finishes seventh at State Meet

[caption id="attachment_13886" align="alignleft" width="270"] Clear Lake’s Sam Pedelty and Ike Branstad ran strong races for the Lions at the State Cross Country Meet.[/caption]

It was a good day for area runners, as both the Clear Lake and Garner-Hayfield-Ventura cross country teams placed high at the State cross country meet held Saturday at Lakeside Golf Course in Fort Dodge.

The top-ranked Cardinals took top honors in the Class 2A team race with 59 points.  GHV was 20 points ahead of the second place team, Unity Christian.  Clear Lake also had an impressive day, finishing in the top 10, with a seventh place finish in a very competitive 15 team field race.

Chase Smith led the Cardinals with a second place finish in a time of 16:7.1.  Smith, who is a senior, finished an outstanding prep career at GHV.  Last year, Smith also placed second at the State Meet.  Smith’s younger brother, Reece, also has a lot of promise.  Reece wasn’t far behind his brother, with a fifth place finish in a time of 16:24.6.  Rounding out the Cardinal squad was Logan Dalbeck, 13th, 16:48, Ray Cataldo was 28th in 17:23.2, Derek Brown finished with a time of 17:33.5 for 35th place, Ezra Marroquinn was 56th with a time of 17:53.6, and Austin Siegrist was 84th with a time of 18:17.6.

“I am very proud of the team performance,” said Coach Jeff Short.  “I felt bad for Chase not reaching his individual goal for the race, but very proud of the leadership of this team.  Chase embraced the leadership role and brought home the team title in great fashion.”

The Lions were led by freshman Eric Faught, who finished 30th in a time of 17:26.  Sam Pedelty crossed the finish line next in 49th place in a time of 17:47.  Ike Branstad placed 52nd in a time of 17:48 and Ryan Faught finished 67th in a time of 18:03.  Kaleb Froiland placed 101st in a time of 18:34 and Spencer Orr was 110th in a time of 18:48.  Grant Dieken finished 118th in a time of 19:02.

“For seniors Ryan Faught, Kaleb Froiland, Spencer Orr, and Sam Jones, this meet was a culmination of hundreds of miles logged and a great high school career,” said Coach Nick DiMarco. “These four seniors provided the leadership needed for the Lions to achieve this success.  Underclassmen Grant Dieken, Ike Branstad, Sam Pedelty, and Eric Faught have already indicated that they intend on using their experience at the State Meet as a springboard for a successful season next year.”

Jones finishes 47th 

[caption id="attachment_13887" align="alignleft" width="270"] Clear Lake’s Gretchen Jones was back for her second trip to the State X-C Meet.[/caption]

Clear Lake sophomore Gretchen Jones represented the Lady Lions as an individual qualifier at the State Meet.  This was Jones second trip to State.  She finished 47th with a time of 20:52.

Coach Nick DiMarco praised Jones ability to adapt to the new 5K distance and looks for her to lead the girl’s team next year.

“The State Meet is always an exciting event and to have such great crowd support was a motivator to the runners.  The success of this team is due to the great community support and Assistant Coach Steven Story.  Coach Story donated countless hours to help each runner reach their potential.  His expertise as a runner and history with the Lions was an asset to the team.”